Posted on 01/18/2008 5:25:03 AM PST by alnitak
Shattering all its previous records, the U.S. wind energy industry installed 5,244 megawatts (MW) in 2007, expanding the nation’s total wind power generating capacity by 45% in a single calendar year and injecting an investment of over $9 billion into the economy, the American Wind Energy Association (AWEA) announced today. The new wind projects account for about 30% of the entire new power-producing capacity added nationally in 2007 and will power the equivalent of 1.5 million American households annually while strengthening U.S. energy supply with clean, homegrown electric power.
“This is the third consecutive year of record-setting growth, establishing wind power as one of the largest sources of new electricity supply for the country,” said AWEA Executive Director Randall Swisher. “This remarkable and accelerating growth is driven by strong demand, favorable economics, and a period of welcome relief from the on-again, off-again, boom-and-bust, cycle of the federal production tax credit (PTC) for wind power.”
“But the PTC and tax incentives for other renewable energy sources are now in danger of lapsing at the end of this year—and at the worst moment for the U.S economy,” added Swisher. “The U.S. wind industry calls on Congress and the President to quickly extend the PTC—the only existing U.S. incentive for wind power—in order to sustain this remarkable growth along with the manufacturing jobs, fresh economic opportunities, and reduction of global warming pollution that it provides.”
The U.S. wind power fleet now numbers 16,818 MW and spans 34 states. American wind farms will generate an estimated 48 billion kilowatt-hours (kWh) of wind energy in 2008, just over 1% of U.S. electricity supply, powering the equivalent of over 4.5 million homes.
(Excerpt) Read more at awea.org ...
The best place I've seen to build a wind farm is in Pickstown, SD. There are very windy bluffs overlooking the Missouri River, very few people, and there are already existing power lines for the hydroelectic plant at the Ft. Randall Dam.
That's unique in that a source of timely power (relatively reliable except in low water conditions) is sited and proximate to a wind-source location. If the transmission lines are under-sized, the upgrade and/or addition on the right-of-way will be less NIMBY prohibitive. Good for you....now if they would get a wind proponent to build there, without increasing your taxes to offset the siting (to hide the true cost of wind power), it would be a good thing.
You are so correct. This stuff is junk. Wind lovers get over it.
I was shocked to see that Iowa has fallen to 5th place in the nation on installed megawatts. But happy for the nation as a whole.
Wind power is excellent.
Nice contrast between old and new technology. The 3 on the bottom are equal to most if not all of the small units on top.
The trickiest part of windturbines is making a really reliable transmission. There are few things that produce the torque that a 300 foot windmill produces. The Germans Enercon design has no transmission and just a giant, expensive low speed generator. Most have a 2 stage transmission with a 1200 rpm output and some of them have been known to wear out in as little as 5 years.
Wow, you sure fired up the naysayers on this thread.
Modern portable outhouses probably are more aesthetic than the old shacks, too, but they STILL are not desirable in the middle of a residential community (and are probably as welcome as a 200 foot propeller on a 250 foot pole).
Would you like to buy a bridge? (BS)
You are correct about the value of the load factor but not the dynamics. Windmills do not run at 100 percent power for 30 percent of the time to achieve a 30 percent load factor.
Modern portable outhouses probably are more aesthetic than the old shacks, too, but they STILL are not desirable in the middle of a residential community (and are probably as welcome as a 200 foot propeller on a 250 foot pole).
No one puts wind farms in the middle of residential communities either. They are certainly very very welcome to iowa farm communities.
yeah, coulda used you around here a couple of days ago!
The handout dollars per btu or per kwhr may be less for the big brown energy sources, but the overall dollars for those sources is hugh!! Eventually the PTC will probably be halved so that there will be less to share among more power plants but we will have developed viable new source of power.
Even as bible thumper sharing the gospel, there is a time to recognize that one is casting pearls before swine.
The trickiest part of windturbines is making a really reliable transmission. There are few things that produce the torque that a 300 foot windmill produces. The Germans Enercon design has no transmission and just a giant, expensive low speed generator. Most have a 2 stage transmission with a 1200 rpm output and some of them have been known to wear out in as little as 5 years.
Exactly. So how much do those transmissions cost as compared to the investment/return on the entire mill?
Is this a money pit with no real return on investment without tax incentives?
The power consumed in "iowa farm communities" is totally insignificant compared to suburban and urban load centers. Wind farms serve no practical purpose tas a meaningful, dependable energy source to the infrastructure and users who consume today's energy in this country (at least, to more than 99% of the users, except those who live in vast open areas of no infrastructure/development).
Windmills are to satisfy the Liberal-guilt-ridden eco-wacko's minds, not for purposeful alternative energy to supply the Nation's energy demand.
Well, the company in my home town, Clipper Windpower is trying to handle that by making the transmission modular enough for the Nacelle crane to disassemble. They are having some teething pains and as usual it is the transmission that is the biggest risk. I suppose a tranny change on a 2 million dollar machine is about $150k.
Is this a money pit with no real return on investment without tax incentives?
That is what we are getting closer to achieving. When a company like GE invests several hundred million in a windmill design and sells 2.3 billion worth of one turbine in 07, you have to think they are in this for the long run. This is also true of such companies as Siemens and BP and Mitsubishi. These are not fly by night companies. They intend to push this technology to the point where it is subsidized no more, per unit of power, than all the other energy sources, which is only fair.
Yer wrong but I can also tell that you have made up your mind.
Works well enough for sail boats. Not so good for electric generation.
Yeah me too. Wind will never deliver the promise for the land area it takes and the effort it takes to maintain ....
Nuclear power is the only viable alternative, other than living in caves.
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